London shares were flat, subdued by a fresh slide in crude oil prices as Brent hit its lowest level since November.

The international oil benchmark dropped by a further 2.1 per cent this session to $47.41, adding to its 4.8 per cent fall yesterday.

It came after a Kremlin spokesperson said no decision had been made on whether Russia would agree to extend oil cuts - which were introduced by Opec and other major oil producing states in January - into the second half of the year.

Michael Hewson, a chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, said the comments created further concern among investors, who have also been fretting about slowing Chinese demand and rising US shale output.

Some relief: Pearson said it was looking at ways to save an additional £300million by the end of 2019 and that it has begun 'a strategic review' of its US school publishing business

On the stock market, Pearson shares have soared 14 per cent after the global education company battling a downturn announced it would cut more costs and consider selling its US school courseware business in the latest attempt to restructure.

Alex Sebastian

Host commentator

Camilla Canocchi

Host commentator

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17:41

FTSE CLOSE

The FTSE 100 ended the day higher, buoyed by surging Pearson shares after the loss-making publishing company announced plans for a fresh cost-cutting drive.

Some 66 per cent of Pearson investors voted against the remuneration report in a non-binding poll in a sign of disapproval of the company's performance.

Chief executive John Fallon was handed a 20 per cent pay rise in 2016.

15:48

More reaction to the payroll report from across the Atlantic

Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK -

'US markets opened higher after a rather mixed bag of a US jobs report which showed that April jobs grew at 211k, slightly above expectations. This was somewhat tempered by a revision in the March number to 79k, down from 98k, while wages showed a surprise fall to 2.5% to 2.7%.'

'Even though the standout number was a headline unemployment rate that fell to 4.4%, its lowest rate since May 2001, it came about as a result of a drop in the labour participation rate from 63% to 62.9%. While this should be seen as a welcome development it also needs to be put into context, in that in May 2001 there was a lot more people in the workforce with the participation rate at a much healthier 66.7%.'

'With unemployment at such low levels it still remains a significant conundrum as to why wage growth remains so lacklustre. The weakness of these sorts of wages numbers are not the numbers associated with an economy firing on all cylinders but nonetheless investors continue to price in the likelihood of a June rate rise with a 100% probability, which is quite amazing given we are five weeks away from that meeting. A lot can change in the space of five weeks.'

15:32

The US jobs number is being seen as nailing on the June rate rise

Aberdeen Asset Management investment strategist Luke Bartholomew -

'This is another firm step towards a hike in June. Wage growth is a little disappointing. But that is more than outweighed my strong jobs growth and the fall in unemployment.'

'The Fed has made clear it is going to look through some of the weak economic data that's been coming through as they believe the fundamentals of the economy are strong. This number is something of a vindication of that view. There's not much now to suggest we are anything but very close to full employment.'

15:05

FTSE now up 28 points at 7,276.2 - in a choppy session for the index

15:04

US jobs growth rebounds

US jobs growth rebounded in April in a boost for Donald Trump after a sluggish start to the year for the world's biggest economy.

America's closely watched nonfarm payrolls figures showed a higher than expected increase of 211,000 in employment numbers, a big upturn after a gain of 79,000 in March.

15:01

Warren Buffet backs out of IBM

Shares in IBM have tumbled after Warren Buffett said he had sold about a third of his stake in the company.

IBM’s focus on IT services and equipment that target companies seeking to run internal IT facilities has proven damaging for the company amid the rise of cloud computing. This new direction has led to the decline of IBM’s core business.

The pressure on IBM is being increased by competitors such as AWS, Google and Microsfot that are currently digging deep into the cloud.

Buffet added: 'I don’t value IBM the same way that I did six years ago when I started buying. . . I’ve revalued it somewhat downward.'

14:44

Mixed opening for US markets

The Dow Jones opened 7.14 points, or 0.03 per cent, lower at 20,944.33, dragged down by computer giant IBM.

But the S&P was up 5.14 points, or 0.22 per cent, at 2,394.66 and the Nasdaq rose 16.51 points, or 0.27 per cent, at 6,091.84.

12:53

Is M&S finally about to bounce back? High street giant's shares jump as it brings in another big hitter, naming Archie Norman as chairman

M&S has been in trouble for years but appointments this week have got investors excited. Read the full story here.

12:29

And on Sunday the French go to the polls

Investors will be hoping for the stability of Macron rather than the upheaval of Le Pen.

It appears unlikely that Le Pen will win despite substantial gains in recent days in the polls.

Perhaps the biggest threat is that if Macron fails to make sufficient changes to the notoriously self-centred EU, then Le Pen’s trajectory could carry her through into a victory at the next election.

12:26

Still plenty to come this afternoon including the US jobs report

This afternoon’s US jobs report comes off the back of an uncharacteristically poor payrolls number last month.

The big question today is whether last month was merely a weather-related blip or something more serious.

With markets currently seeing a near 90 per cent chance of an interest rate hike next month, a strong batch of jobs data this afternoon could be one of the final pieces of the jigsaw.

12:24

London shares flat at lunch - Pearson leading the way

The FTSE 100 was flat at lunch with Pearson the standout performer.

Education publisher Pearson was the top riser, soaring 11 per cent following its first-quarter update.

Pearson, which has struggled keeping pace with the rise of digital content, issued five profit warnings in the space of four years.

In its first-quarter results, the firm cheered investors with a plan to cut costs and a strategic review of its US division.

Pearson's shares are still down around 8.5 percent year to date, however.

Among other bright spots, British Airways-owner IAG jumped 5 per cent after posting a better-than-expected set of results, helping peer EasyJet also rise 3.6 per cent.

Hip and knee replacement maker Smith & Nephew gained more than 3 per cent after its first quarter revenue rose 3 percent as it returned to double-digit growth in emerging markets and knee implants saw a strong performance.

Gilbert takes up his role as an independent non-executive director with immediate effect.

He's the one on the right

11:15

Bankrupt Alitalia launches 20% sale on all flights from today

The Italian airline, which started bankruptcy proceedings this week, is cutting fares on all its flights from the UK to fill seats.

On Tuesday, Alitalia filed for bankruptcy for the second time in a decade after its workers rejected wage cuts linked to a £1.7billion rescue. But it said flights 'will continue to operate as planned'.

Probably best to book with a credit card so that you can recoup the money if the flights never take off.

The 20 per cent sale will last until midnight on 8 May and is for flights from the UK to anywhere in the world except for United States, Canada, Mexico and Brazil, between the 15 May and 10 July 2017.

11:14

Could be trouble at Pearson’s AGM today

The remuneration report, includes plans to hand chief executive John Fallon a 20 per cent pay rise.

11:05

M&S appoints former Asda boss Archie Norman as new chairman just days after poaching ex-Halfords chief exec to head its women's section

Average pay is set to stall and inequality is set to rise in the UK over the coming years, according to research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

The research institute said that if the Office for Budget Responsibility are correct about the outlook for employment, earnings and inflation, 'there will be no real growth in median income over the next two years, and only modest growth thereafter'.

'We also project increases in inequality: both because forecast growth in average real earnings would benefit higher income households more than lower income ones, and because cuts in the real value of benefits will reduce incomes among poorer working age households. Real incomes are projected to fall among the poorest 20% of households over the next five years, with households with children being particularly affected,' the report says.

Currently, the average income in the UK is only around 5 per cent higher than it was just before the financial crash, according to the IFS.

This is more than 10 per cent lower than might have been expected before the recession, based upon the historical growth rate, the report said.

11:02

And fallers

11:02

Here's this sessions risers

10:59

Irish boxmaker Smurfit Kappa shares up 1.4 per cent

Irish packaging group Smurfit Kappa has said it expects a positive pricing environment to translate into higher annual earnings this year despite a first-quarter dip because of cost inflation.

Though core profit slipped 1 percent year on year to $305.2million in the quarter, revenue rose 6 per cent and Smurfit Kappa said it expects margins to improve as it increases box prices progressively throughout the year to offset the higher costs.

10:07

FTSE 100 has now turned up, gaining 12 points at 7,260.0

The FTSE has managed to recover early losses, as news-driven gains for the likes of Pearson, M&S and IAG dragged the index back into the green despite the negative sentiment from a week of plummeting crude prices.

It seems the markets have given up all optimism when it comes to OPEC’s ability to dictate oil prices.

For whatever OPEC does from here, it will either be undermined by low conformity (if the cut is too large) or a like-for-like rise in US production (in response to higher prices).

Brent Crude oil has fallen from almost $57 a barrel, four weeks or so ago, to less than $48 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate fell to under $44.

09:53

Goldman Sachs warns City of London will 'stall' because of Brexit

The boss of US investment bank Goldman Sachs has warned that London’s rapid expansion as a financial centre could ‘stall’ because of the turmoil caused by the Brexit process.

Lloyd Blankfein said international banks could reduce their ‘footprint’ in Britain and that Goldman Sachs had ‘contingency plans’ to move staff depending on the outcome of negotiations.

In an interview with the BBC, when asked whether London’s expansion as a financial capital would reverse, he said: ‘I don't think it will totally reverse.

‘It will stall, it might backtrack a bit, it just depends on a lot of things about which we are uncertain and I know there isn't certainty at the moment.’

Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein

09:03

Tories make big gains in the local elections - a precursor for June 8

Theresa May is on track for a big victory in the general election after racking up gains from Labour in local polls overnight - while the Ukip vote is crumbling.

As the results flow in, the Tories have already gained more than 150 council seats and seized control of Warwickshire, Lincolnshire, Gloucestershire, Monmouthshire and the Isle of Wight.

The party has also won the first new mayoral contest, with Tim Bowles triumphant in the West of England.

Senior Labour figures have been making clear that they blame Jeremy Corbyn's leadership for their woes.

At a time when it should be adding to its tally, the Opposition has so far lost more than 100 seats.

But shadow chancellor John McDonnell risked ridicule by blaming the media, saying voters were only just 'getting to know' Mr Corbyn two years after he took the job, and claiming Labour losing in the West of England was a 'good' showing.

Meanwhile, Ukip has failed to retain a single seat - and the Lib Dem performance has been patchy. Former Cabinet Ian Duncan Smith said he believed there was 'no point' to Ukip any more.

Oil the biggest problem this morning, nobody can make money at $47.41 per barrel

Oil prices were marooned near five-months lows after a near 5 per cent fall in the previous session on concerns over rising US supply, wiping out all of the price gains since OPEC's move to curb output.

The international oil benchmark dropped by a further 2.1 per cent to $47.41, adding to falls yesterday.

West Texas Intermediate, the US marker, weakened another 2.4 per cent to $44.45, leaving it down more than 6 per cent in the last two days.

08:48

Here's a round up of the results

British Airways owner IAG reported operating profit and revenue ahead of expectations, posting a record first-quarter performance in what is usually the weakest part of the year.

Smith & Nephew, Europe's biggest artificial hip and knee maker, reported a 3 per cent rise in underlying revenue in its first quarter, helped by a return to double-digit growth in emerging markets and a solid performance in knee implants.

Richard Solomons, the chief executive of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), will step down at the end of June after six years in his role as the company posted a rise in revenues.

Global revenue per available room (revpar), a measure used by the hotels industry, rose 2.7 per cent in the first quarter, while occupancy rose 0.8 per cent.

08:41

M&S hires second big name of the week, with former Asda boss Archie Norman joining the retailer

Marks & Spencer has appointed Archie Norman, a veteran of the sector, as its new chairman.

Norman, 63, will start his new job on September 1, succeeding Robert Swannell, who will retire from the board on that date.

Swannell had said in December he would retire in 2017, having served six years in the post.

Norman was instrumental in turnarounds at supermarket Asda and home improvement firm Kingfisher and has served as chairman of broadcaster ITV, investment bank Lazard and craft retailer Hobbycraft.

He is also a former member of Britain's lower house of Parliament, representing the Conservative Party.

Earlier this week Marks & Spencer poached the chief executive of Halfords in an attempt to revive its struggling clothing, beauty and home sections.

Jill McDonald will have accountability for all aspects of M&S’s non-food business, from design and sourcing through to getting goods on the shelf, and will report directly to the chief executive, Steve Rowe.

08:34

FTSE 100 off 10 points but publisher Pearson is belting along - up 12%

Pearson, the global education company battling a downturn in its biggest markets, said it would cut more costs and consider selling its US school courseware business in the latest attempt to restructure.

Pearson, which has issued five profit warnings in four years after students in the United States started renting rather than buying text books, said it would cut its cost base by £300million a year by the end of 2019.

Employing 35,000 people, Pearson provides everything from textbooks to school testing, college courses and online degrees, with Britain, the United States, South Africa, Brazil and China its most important markets.

It has been hit in recent years by an improving US economy, which encourages people to go into work rather than higher education, and by the swift shift to digital services which has hammered its revenue stream.

It has cut more than £650million of cost in two restructuring programmes over the last four years and said on Friday it had identified further areas to make cuts, in general and administrative expenses and in North America.

It will also conduct a strategic review of its US. K12 courseware publishing business, which it said had lagged other sectors in moving to digital services. It said the division required high levels of investment and was facing a challenging market environment.

Pearson, which has lost a quarter of its market value in the last nine months, said first-quarter trading had been in line with guidance and it reiterated its full-year targets.

Sales in the first three months were up 6 per cent in underlying terms, helped by a stronger performance from its North American higher education courseware unit.

But it said market pressures on the business were still expected to impact gross sales, primarily in the second half.

Boss John Fallon said: 'The measures we are announcing today build on the work completed last year and will allow us to further simplify our portfolio, reduce costs and accelerate our digital transformation.'